I loved you from afar
by YamisGal
Summary: Serenity has a crush on Seto Kaiba, her brother's worst enemy! Will he ever find out, and will he ever return her feelings? Chapter 4 up SetoSerenity
1. Beautiful Stranger

I loved you from afar  
  
Chapter 1: Beautiful Stranger  
  
'.....' thought  
  
POV- point of view  
  
(I tried not to change POVs too much, so hopefully it isn't too confusing)  
  
Pairing: Seto/Serenity  
  
Warning! Tea bashing  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I let a soft sigh escape my lips as through the nearby window I watched the object of my affections stroll by and enter the cafe where I currently resided.His knee-length navy blue trench coat swished impressively behind him and the front of it was open just enough to reveal a tight black muscle shirt that outlined every curve of his well-muscled chest. His black pants were neatly pressed and looked fairly new. The card shaped pendant around his neck fluttered slightly as the door drew shut in his wake.  
  
His cold, confident blue eyes, shadowed by his short brown hair, flashed a careful gaze around the small restaurant, as if he were looking for someone. The young CEO stared straight into my eyes for a moment, before reluctantly letting his gaze slide to my companions. With a smirk at my companions, he started to close the distance between us. My brother, Jou, had a long and bad history with Kaiba, so it wasn't surprising that he let out a low warning growl as the champion duelist headed our way. Meeting Jou's gaze and noting the fury in his enemy's eyes, Seto Kaiba defiantly sat at the table next to us.  
  
"You know that you just proved you truly are a puppy," Seto commented as he took a seat.  
  
I hid a small smile with my hand, as my brother turned red with fury and embarrassment. 'Here we go again' , I thought with amusement.  
  
"I am not a puppy, moneybags!" Jou responded lamely with a fiercer growl.   
  
He started to say something else, but was interrupted by the waitress bringing the pizza that we had ordered 20 minutes ago. Seto was forgotten as everyone struggled to grab some pizza before Jou and Tristan, the two 'bottomless pits' of the group, ate it all; everyone that is, except me.  
  
I gazed casually in Seto's direction and found myself meeting a pair of beautiful cobalt blue eyes, but they seemed different than before, as if they had a softer tone to them. I found that I was unable to pull my eyes from his and barely noticed when a piece of my favorite type of pizza, bacon, was dropped on the plate in front of me. However, I was startled and somewhat annoyed when a moment later, Jou waved his hand in front of my face, trying to get my attention.  
  
"Earth to Serenity," Jou called in a sing-song voice. " Don't ya wanna eat?"  
  
I let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't noticed what had captured my attention for that brief moment. I turned slightly red because I shouldn't have gotten caught in the first place. O well, what's done is done. I started to munch daintily on my pizza, trying to seem oblivious to the conversations currently being held around me.   
  
Tristan was currently trying to persaude my brother to let me go to the dance tommorrow night with him, and Jou wasn't about to give in anytime soon. Yugi and Yami were talking about the upcoming Duel Monsters tournament, while Tea was spouting her friendship speeches to any unlucky person who happened to be passing by. Soon the owner realized that she was scaring away all his customers and threw her out of the cafe. Everyone snickered with amusement, but I felt kind of sorry for her, even if she did get on my nerves fairly often. My eyes roamed away from the ranting girl picking herself off the sidewalk and returned to Seto, who was currently hunched over his laptop, typing furiously.  
  
***************************************Seto's POV*********************************************  
  
  
  
As I entered the cafe, wanting to get away from work and life in general, I discovered Yugi and his gang were there. 'Oh great.' I thought with a frown. I whirled back to face the door when someone caught my eye. She was sitting with Yugi's gang, but I had never seen her before.   
  
She had light chestnut hair that fell slightly past her shoulders and bright chocolate brown eyes that started straight into mine as if she could see my very soul. With further scrutiny, I discovered she was wearing a long, flowing skirt that ended just above her knees and a silk baby blue blouse. Her clothes fit her perfectly, outlining every curve of her shapely body.   
  
I wondered who she was. 'She must be new' , I decided. 'Anyone else would know that hanging out with those losers would get her nowhere....but wait a minute! Since when do I care about a stranger's well being?' I wanted to keep my distance, so I wouldn't end up getting attached and eventually get hurt, but my subconscious had a mind of it's own. I found myself rapidly closing the distance between us, rather than going in the opposite direction.  
  
Luckily, I reined in my body and managed to steer myself to a table nearby. I heard Jou growl as I approached. I smirked, he was so predictable.  
  
"You know that you just proved you truly are a puppy," I commented as I defiantly took a seat.  
  
The stranger covered a smile under long slender fingers as Jou turned crimson from a combination of fury and embarrassment.  
  
"I am not a puppy, moneybags!" Jou protested. Luckily for him, the waitress intervened by bringing a large pizza to their table.  
  
'Animals' I thought as I watched the males fight over the pizza. A slice of bacon pizza was dropped onto the plate of the pretty brunette that had caught my eye earlier, but to my surprise, her gaze did not falter. When her concentration was not broken, Jou waved a hand, trying to get her attention. When she finally tore her gaze away from mine and looked at him trying to hide annoyance, I sighed in disappointment. It just wasn't meant to be.   
  
I turned, putting my back to them, and opened my laptop. I tried to type up today's statistics for the company, but my mind was wandering. The instant I was done my coffee, I gathered my things and left for my office. 


	2. Actions Speak Louder Than Words

I loved you from afar  
  
Chapter 2: Actions Speak Louder Than Words  
  
'thought'   
  
I'd like to thank Yami+Hoshi, Zidane, ShadowDragon, and silvercloud for reviewing!!  
  
~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I looked away for a moment, and when I looked back, he was gone. I can't say that I wasn't disappointed; quite the opposite. I sat there for a moment, cursing myself for not saying anything to him; after all, I couldn't keep it a secret forever...but maybe, it had been for the best. After all what would I have said?  
  
"Hi. You don't know me, but I'm Serenity Wheeler, Jou's little sister....yes, the puppy's sister...oh, and by the way, I have a major crush on you."  
  
Yeah, right. He would have left as fast as his legs would carry him, without ever giving me a second glance. I slouched in my chair and crossed my arms. One way or another, I would get him to notice me and find out if he returned my affections. I grinned as I pieced together my plan.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~Seto's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I drummed my fingers on the tabletop as I thought about the afternoon's happenings.  
  
' I wish I hadn't left without saying a word to....Serenity?-That's what Jou called her, right?- but at the time, I was both physically and mentally unable to handle being there in the same room without feeling the urge to hold her in my arms and whisk her away to my mans-What the hell am I thinking?Do I actually harbor feelings for a stranger, a person I may never see again? 'She's not really a stranger.' my subconcious interjected. 'You know her name at least.' I shook my head. What is wrong with me? I've never believed in love, much less love at first sight! I've never bonded with anyone except Mokuba since our parents died; I've discovered it only leads to heartache...but I don't know. The sensation I got just from looking into her pure, innocent eyes made me feel...like I could conquer the world, just to be able to lay it at her feet- '  
  
I was suddenly jolted back to reality by someone calling my name.  
  
"Mr. Kaiba?" one of my business associates inquired with a impatient tone.  
  
I glared at the man who dared to interrupt me while I was in deep thought. As always, my glare turned his confidence into mush and reduced him to stuttering out an apology.  
  
"M-My d-d-deepest a-a-pologies, M-M-Mr. K-Ka-iba."  
  
With a smirk, I stood up and pushed my chair back. He cringed, knowing what would come next.  
  
"I've grown bored with your rambling. We'll finish this meeting at a later date..."  
  
I paused only long enough to grab my briefcase and head out the door. I purposely let the door slam shut behind me, drowning out the feeble protests of my associate and the angry voices of my clients. Now that that was taken care of, I was free to prepare myself for tommorrow night's dance.  
  
++++++++++++++++++THE NEXT DAY+++++++++++++++++++++  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Beep! Beep! Beep! I woke up to the annoyingly consistent beep of my alarm clock. I smacked the correct button, and feeling satisfied that the noise had stopped, I curled myself back into a ball and closed my eyes. Wait a minute! Today is the day I start school at Domino High. I jumped out of bed and flew into my bureau. I had chosen the perfect outfit last night, but now I didn't think it had the impression that I wanted to make on the first day of school. I tossed clothes left and right until I discovered the perfect outfit.  
  
I slipped on a short sleeved brown peasant top that went well with my chocolate brown eyes and hair before tugging on a pair of jeans that fit modestly around my slim waist. I checked my appearance in the mirror as I brushed my hair and hurried downstairs. In the kitchen, I bumped into Jou who was raiding the fridge. I grabbed a bagel that he hadn't gotten his hands on and nibbled on it as I headed out to my car.  
  
Twenty minutes later, I found myself in the parking lot of Domino High. I sighed as I looked at the huge brick building that seemed to loom over me.I took a deep breath, pried my fingers off the steering wheel, and jumped out of my car, making sure to lock the door so I wouldn't be tempted to run back to it. Then I followed a crowd of students into the school as I viewed the inside for the first time. With some assistance from my brother, I finally found my way to my first class. As the late bell rang, I waved Jou off with a cheery smile and reluctantly made my way into the room.  
  
*****************Seto's POV******************  
  
I finished typing up the agenda for next week's business for lack of anything better to do; school is such a waste of time. I saved the document and closed my laptop. Then I leaned back in my chair, folding my hands behind my head. Suddenly the door opened and in walked the girl that had been haunting my thoughts for the past night. My chair promptly toppled with my surprise, taking me with it.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
As I forced myself to walk in the room, I was sure I was visibly shaking. A couple seconds after I walked, a loud thud and a blur of brown hair and blue trench coat caught my attention as he toppled over, taking the chair with him. Before I knew what I was doing, I was running to his side. He was already rising to his feet as I approached. He seemed to be hurt, not only his pride, but his right leg. Seto immediately started cursing at the chair, as everyone continued to snicker at his fall. One cold glare shut them up and caused them to find other amusement.  
  
*****************Seto's POV******************  
  
I glared at everyone as I brushed myself off. Damn it, my leg must've gotten caught under the chair when I fell....I guess I'll have to get some ice for it or something.  
  
"I'm going to take him to the nurse," I heard Serenity announce as she steered me out of the room an instant later.  
  
The moment we were out of sight, I pulled my arm away.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" I snapped.  
  
She looked hurt. "I was just trying to help..." Her gaze fell at her feet.  
  
'Great going Kaiba. First, you make a complete ass out of yourself in front of her, and now you're yelling at her. She'll never like you if she thinks you're always like this.'  
  
"Look, I'm sorry," I said, trying to make up for my earlier outburst. "I just don't like being babied..."  
  
"I'm not trying to baby you... I was just trying to help, is that so wrong?" she looked directly into my eyes, waiting for my reply.  
  
"Yes, because with my past, you wouldn't understand why I want to be truly independent." I replied.Before she could open her mouth, I also added, "and I don't plan on enlightening you anytime soon. Let's go back to class."  
  
I started walking down the hallway, and when I didn't hear the echo of footsteps behind me, I turned. "Are you coming or not?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
'What a jerk! All he can think about is getting back to class.Well, I'll show him, he won't be so cocky then...'  
  
"Nope, I'm staying right here," I said as I leaned casually against a nearby locker.  
  
"No?" he repeated . "Fine, stay here."   
  
Seto began to walk back toward the Algebra room, but the bell rang just as he got a couple yards away from the door.   
  
"See? It was just a waste of your time," I grinned triumphantly.  
  
He made a face at me and started to head toward his next class. I ran after him, waving my schedule.  
  
"Wait, you have to show me where Room A115 is!" I shouted.  
  
*****************Seto's POV****************  
  
I laughed at her efforts and sped up.   
  
In no time at all, we were walking into room A115 for english.   
  
Curious faces looked Serenity over as she looked nervously around the room. The girls scowled because they were jealous of her beauty and the guys all wanted to date her. I glared at them and put a protective arm around her shoulders.  
  
The teacher paired us up so that we would always have the same person read our assignments and give us their input. As luck would have it, Serenity became mine.  
  
In no time at all, the bell for lunch rang. Everyone flocked out of the room, leaving me and Serenity behind.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Seto steered me after the crowd, but walking much more slowly. Finally, he spoke.  
  
"Serenity...."  
  
"Yes?" I asked.  
  
"Will you come with me to the dance tonight?" I questioned.  
  
Without hesitation, I said "Yes, I will."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
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	3. Busted by Mai

I loved you from afar  
  
Chapter 3:   
  
'....' thoughts  
  
~~~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~~~  
  
It wasn't until we got to the cafeteria entrance that Seto finally released my arm.   
  
"I'll see you tonight," he murmured. "Your house at 6:30?"  
  
After he gave me a soft kiss on the cheek, he walked off as if nothing had happened between us. It took me a couple moments to snap out of the daze I was in, but I soon found where the 'gang' was sitting and headed over there. I sat down at the only available seat, which unfortunately was next to Tristan.  
  
"Hey baby!" Tristan greeted me, slinging an arm around my shoulders as if he owned me. The guy is a bit possessive, don't ya think?. I peeled his arm away, trying not to look disgusted. He looked unfazed though. "Guess who I'm going to the dance with tonight?"  
  
'Personally, I couldn't care less' I thought, but manner got the best of me.   
  
"Who?" I asked politely.  
  
"You, of course!" Tristan replied.  
  
I turned to glare at Jou for 'giving his permission/acceptance', but he looked as confused and angry as I.  
  
"Who said ya could go to the dance wit' ma' sista?" he demanded, rising from his place at the table. Tristan stood also, hands clenched into fists. Luckily I jumped in before they could start a fight.  
  
"I hate to burst your bubble, but I'm already going with someone," I said. "Sorry Tristan."   
  
Tristan started to open his mouth to ask who, but Mai beat him to it.  
  
"So who's the lucky guy?" she asked.  
  
"yeah, who?" Jou echoed.  
  
'If I told Jou I was going with Kaiba, he'd flip!'  
  
"um...someone." I replied uncomfortably. Jou cocked an eyebrow curiously. I gulped.  
  
"Joe Someone." I added hastily.  
  
"I've neva heard of 'im." Jou scratched his head and turned to Mai. "Have you?"  
  
I looked at Mai, pleading her to say yes.  
  
"Yes." she said calmly as I sighed in relief. "I know him."  
  
"What's he like?" Jou asked, looking suspiciously at me before returning his gaze back to Mai.  
  
Luckily Mai caught on quickly. As she started weaving a tale about "Joe Someone", I decided I'd better leave.  
  
"I'll be right back." I muttered as I rose from the table. It was all I could do to keep from running out of the cafeteria toward the library.  
  
******Seto's POV*****  
  
"See you tonight." I murmured. "Your house at 6:30?"  
  
She gave a slight nod. I kissed her cheek, gently brushing my lips against her soft skin and with a slight wink, I strolled off toward the library.   
  
I sat down at an empty table and opened my laptop. I positioned my hands above the keyboard as I racked my brain for something that needed to be typed before coming up with a blank. Wierd, I was suddenly at a loss for something to type. Everything seemed to insignificant to be worth my time.My mind kept drifting back to Serenity, wondering if she was thinking about me the way I was about her. I sighed and put my laptop away. Maybe I'll go see what Serenity's up to....  
  
~~~~Serenity's POV~~~~  
  
Once I was outside the cafeteria doors, I started to sprint for the library. Whenever I felt like being alone, the library offered peace and solace because no one was ever there except the librarians. Right around one more bend in the hallway was the library doors.   
  
As I made my way around the bend, I was suddenly involved in a fiery passionate kiss. When we finally came up for air, I managed to whisper, "Seto." acknowledging his presence. We immediately enagaged in a needy, demanding kiss. I let my finger trace the outline of his chest while he gently started to nip at my neck. I moaned both in slight pain and longing before I captured his lips with my own once more.  
  
"Joe Someone is awfully cute," I heard someone say behind me.   
  
Without looking, I knew it was Mai.   
  
"So the rumors are true," she announced almost gleefully. "You two really are going out!" To her, this was just more gossip.  
  
"Please don't tell anyone, ok?" I begged.  
  
"Of course I won't! It'll be our little secret." Mai winked and headed back toward the cafeteria,but I knew by last period about half the school would know. Mai was notorious for her big mouth.  
  
"oh, and by the way, I think you'd better get a scarf or something to cover up your neck," she giggled as she walked away.   
  
I ran to the nearest bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. Mai was right. There were little red bite marks all over the left side of my neck. Seto came in behind me, looking over my shoulder at the mirror.   
  
"Admiring my handiwork? A masterpiece if I do say so myself..." he said, trying to lighten the mood while he sucked mercilessly on my neck.   
  
"Seto!" I scolded, gently pushing him away. "What am I gonna do? Someone's bound to notice and they'll tell my brother!" I turned to face him and he enveloped me in his arms, pulling me close.   
  
"I think this calls for an emergency shopping spree and that means cutting class..." Seto said, kissing my forehead.   
  
I frowned, "but Jou will notice I'm not in History…"  
  
"Don't worry about it…just tell him you were sick," Seto suggested. "Come on!"  
  
I must have looked doubtful because the next thing I knew, he was carrying me toward the back entrance to the school where we found his limo 'conveniently' waiting for us. He must cut class alot; this seemed almost routine to him. He dumped me unceremoniously on the seat and slid in after me.  
  
Little did we know as we drove off, someone had been watching us….  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I'm sorry it took so long but I'm dealing with a combination of writer's block and laziness. Just so you know, I probably won't update this until I update "Love among Friends" which might be a while....  
  
Who was watching them? If you guess right, I'll give you a cookie! lol ^.^  
  
Read and Review! 


	4. Seto foots the bill

Thank you to all my loyal reviewers and because of you I have updated!  
  
Thanks to: DaBlackNinja, Wolfgurl2003, victoria prekings, Vegeta-is-forgotten, Curtis Zidane Ziraa, SpazSaten913, shizuzaxseto, Yami+Hoshi, divine-angel143, and cerridwen10.  
  
Special thanks to Crazy Neko for reviewing every chapter!   
  
*gives her a Seto hugging Serenity plushie!*  
  
I loved you from afar  
  
Chapter three: Seto foots the bill  
  
Seto tapped his foot in mock impatientness(A/N: Is that even a word?) as he glanced at his watch for what seemed like the millionth time. He was currently standing outside the women's dressing room in JC Penny's, waiting for Serenity to come out. He had already bought her the scarf as he had promised, although he didn't feel embarrassed about causing those little red marks all over her neck in the first place. The Junior prom was up tomorrow and he planned to take her as his date. Right now she was trying on a dress that he insisted that would look good on no one else but her. As he checked the time again, she appeared at the entrance.   
  
She looked elegant, there were no other words to describe how she looked. The dress she was wearing captured the exact color of Kaiba's eyes. The twilight blue gown had a strapless top and fit her curves in all the right places. She looked like a goddess! The gown glided gently down to her ankles as an endless array of sparkles followed. He looked her up and down, clearly in shock, as she stood there feeling rather uncomfortable. When he finally managed to tear his gaze away from the dress and met her eyes, she looked worried and had a definite frown.   
  
"What's the matter?" Kaiba asked, confused. "It fits you perfectly! What's wrong?"   
  
"I can't let you buy this for me!" Serenity argued. "This dress costs as much as my brother spends on groceries in a month!"   
  
Although the thought of Jou spending a couple hundred dollars a month on food was amusing, he managed to keep his face straight.   
  
"Serenity, this is the Junior Prom and you're my girlfriend. You're supposed to be fussed over and spend a lot of money," Seto told her firmly.   
  
"Are you sure you want to spend this much on me? You've only known me for a few days, not even a week." Serenity inquired softly, turning to gaze at her reflection in the mirror once more. He could tell despite her protests that she really wanted that dress.   
  
"Of course, I'm buying it for you and I won't take 'no' for an answer!" Seto stated.   
  
The twilight blue gown swished around her ankles as she ran to Kaiba and hugged him tightly.   
  
"Thank you so much!" she sobbed into his shirt. "It's what I've always wanted."   
  
He patted her awkwardly on the back as she cried on his chest.   
  
~~~~~~~~~Meanwhile.....~~~~~~~~~~~   
  
Jou was sitting in math class, unable to keep his mind on Geometry. His eyes kept wandering over to where Serenity's chair sat empty. He scrutinized the seat, willing it to tell him where Serenity was. Suddenly, when the teacher's back was turned, Tristan and Duke appeared in the classroom window.   
  
"Come out here!" they mouthed furiously.   
  
"Wha? Why?" Jou muttered aloud.   
  
"What was that, Mr. Wheeler?" the teacher demanded.   
  
"Nothing," the blond mumbled.   
  
"I can't,"Jou mouthed back once the teacher had gone back to correcting papers.   
  
"Come out and we'll tell ya."   
  
"Nu uh, you've already got me in trouble....and why's Dicey Boy wit' ya?" Jou wondered.   
  
"The Jou Wheeler I used to know didn't care 'bout getting into trouble, I guess you're going soft, Joey." Tristan retorted.   
  
"That does it!" Jou growled, causing stares from virtually everyone in the room.   
  
"Mr. Wheeler! No more outbursts or I will have to give you detention!" Mrs. Sensei snapped.   
  
When she went to help another student with a perimeter and area problem, he quietly slid out of his chair and slipped out the door, letting it silently click shut behind him.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Read and Review! I won't update until I get 27 reviews!  
  
~YamisGal  
  
Also, if you have time, please check out What have I gotten myself into? by Mimiholly, a fellow reviewer. It's a story about her and her friends getting trapped in the YGO world! I am her beta reader, so please go read it! 


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